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Carol Powell Do you find cupcakes to be a beneficial of sinister influence on our daily lives? Cupcakes are delicious! That being said the cupcake is only sinister if you eat too many, but how much is too many? Well I guess when it makes you sick to your stomach.Do you believe that delicious treats have some grand scheme in mind, or do they act independently of each other? In my world they are independent of each other. Most of the food items do not interact with each other. So I don’t think they scheme or conspire together, but individually, in their minds, they plan to cause trouble.What's the most horrifying thing you've ever eaten? Brussell sprouts… or bugs… or cat food… or all three.Do you visit a dentist regularly? I do, but have been slacking the last few months, I need to find her phone number.
Why are you so obsessed with teeth? Bad or good childhood memories? Teeth in my art represent the sweet tooth, I am a diabetic. The sweet tooth and the cupcake are enemies. They are at constant battle in the world. The tooth actually began because I found someone copying my carrot character and was very upset. So I thought what would no one ever copy? While driving to L.A. I was thinking about a very expensive dentist bill I had to pay, and how someone hadn’t given me money for a piece I had sold, it suddenly came to me… plush teeth. I’ll start making those. Teeth for the biters… now the tooth has become a part of my iconography as much as the carrot or the cupcake or the girl or the bear. All important icons to me.Was one of your pictures really painted with hot chocolate? Was it the most delicious thing you've ever created? I did paint some pieces with hot chocolate, a cold winter night and some hot chocolate spilling on art is how it started. I had to go with it. And after I did I had some left over so I painted a few more pieces of paper and came up with some interesting results, plus they smell good.It’s one of the most delicious things I’ve created as a piece of art. But I can cook some pretty nice meals and make some decent cookies. 
You may choose one person on earth to be turned into a cupcake and then consumed by you, who would you eat? Why? This is difficult… My problem with this is that what if the person could feel still. I couldn’t hurt the person, especially if it were someone I really liked. Also what would the benefit be if I did? Say I picked someone smart would that make me smarter. So many things to think about.I know, I know, it’s just a question, if it wouldn’t hurt him, I will pick my favorite person at this time, Jason, since we are working on a project together that would be one way to mesh our ideas, and because I find him quite imaginative and educated. And if I’m going to benefit from the consumption I would like to be smarter and more imaginative. Your art is pretty colorful, why is that? How did you make it so it had nearly every color imaginable without becoming a gawdy mess? I like color, I have studied color theory for a long time, I find it works on and emotional level. It draws people to the painting, and when they get there maybe they’ll stay. It’s a contradiction to the text that is in my work. Happy vs. sad.Careful placement of colors well thought out. I don’t really know why it isn’t a mess. Somehow it works. 
How on earth do you make those tooth-demon fuzzy-wuzzies? Half assed… I really have no sewing skills, I just piece things together and somehow they work. Mostly it’s squares and triangles. And I sew them on the machine and hope they work.Which movie director would you most likely call back after the first date? If I had a first date with one it would be a miracle. But I think Terry Gilliam or Darren Aronofsky.Terry Gilliam because he tells great stories, has an incredible imagination and he makes some of the most surreal and romantic films. Darren Aronofsky because of his portraits of life and pain there in while making visually beautiful films. Do you have any grudges? Who or what are they against? No grudges. Life is tough enough without holding onto negatives.
What or who do you cherish the most in your life? That’s not easy, but I would have to say myself first and foremost. Bbut after that it would be close friends.What's something of yours that you would never sell (either because you are too ashamed or too proud of it). my soul…I have some dolls that I’ve saved for myself, I have a couple of paintings that may never be sold, for one reason or another, but mostly because of their content or size, I have found they are difficult to sell. I have sketchbooks that I may never sell because they are personal. I have a lot of things that I don’t see myself selling. But if someone offered me a fair trade I wouldn’t mind parting with it. Does anything scare you? Sure, the worst fear probably is being alone.
Please fill in the blanks: How many stuffed thingies have you churned out so far? (Are they popular?) The small felt dolls are way past 500 by now. I’d say those were the most popular.The larger felt dolls, are about 15 or so. not as easy to make and not that popular. The plush teeth are around or just over 15. The only ones that are popular out of those are the white ones with the really cute faces. Are YOU popular? (do you want to be?) Not really, my art is, so I’m told.Not popular, but known. Popularity doesn’t interest me as much as notoriety. The art should be popular. 
Why does everyone seem to live in L.A.? I don’t know, but it seems that way doesn’t it. I live outside L.A. in suburbia. But with driving and gas the way it is, and as much as I drive into the city, I really wish I did live in L.A. It would make life a little easier.Which work of art did you have the most fun making? I really enjoyed making “touched” it’s the biggest piece I’ve made at 10ft wide and 8ft high. It was fun because it was easy to draw details into, when I made it I had a nice wall space to work on, and it went so smoothly.What aspect of you does your art represent? My art is autobiographical so most of it is me, but the characters that represent me are usually the girls (in a idealized way) or the bears. I am a both unless they are interacting together then I am usually the girl… but the text and the fabric and all of that that goes into making the painting is me, I find words to express what I cannot in real life. I find images that fill my heart, the fabric is history for me, gifts from friends or something pulled from a bit in a thrift store. Discarded by someone, taken and used by me. Most of the things I use are recycled or vintage. Nothing is new. All old materials. Something that is important to me because it’s nostalgic.Have you ever helped anyone else learn how to draw/paint/design/stuff...etc..? Do you have any prodigy's that will carry on your legacy after you pass away naturally or after an attack by the art-mafia when you refuse to pay protection? I always try to help people with learning. I have not seriously taken on someone to teach but if I am asked I am glad to help. The only legacy I’ll leave is the things I’ve produced in my life time.
Would you ever live in the fantasy world you created, or would you send other people there as punishment? (Or a combination of you living there as queen while you abduct people into your realm and keep them as slaves in the sugar mines of South Molaria?) South Molaria!I’ve had people say they would like to live in my worlds. I myself, I am unsure. Some look like they would be a pleasant place to live, others not so happy. I would like to live in parts of them. I think a landscape of fabric and plush friends might be wonderful. The worlds aren’t really punishing. They are meant to be magical. Stories within stories. What cause do you most support? Animal rights has always been dear to my heart, but also fighting homelessness. L.A. has one of the largest populations of homeless peoples, and plenty of open buildings to house them in. Why it's not changing is beyond me.What else you got ta say? Anythin' cool we needz ta knowz 'bout? STRAIGHT UP SPIT IT THEN! Maybe a little shameless promotion, come see my work at the Hive gallery in Downtown Los Angeles. 729 spring street. I always have something there. Check out my website carolpowell.net and visit the myspace page. http://www.myspace.com/carolpowell.<< Back To Artist Interviews |
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